Powhattan’s Mantle, Pocahantas’ Magic Cloak – by Joan Leotta

(Pocahantas, daughter of Powhattan, was born Matoaka, known as Amonute, and later known as Rebecca Rolfe, b. circa. 1595 in Virginia – d. March 1617, London, England)

Wrapped in the regalsoftness of her hard homeland, Amnute, Makatoa, Pocahantas reigned over all. The cloak was her father’s. A bit of home that travelledwith her to this harsh new place called England.

This outer mantle matched her inner honor, touched the place in her that gave her the strength to save John Smith from the ax, to become John Rolfe’s wife, to endure rough seas on the ship, to try to embrace the cold damp of London.

I wonder, did she ever cry herself to sleep wrapped in that former finery ? Did she lift it to her face amid the stink of London to recall the clean sweet smells of forest and the Bay?

After the birth of her son, Tom, or doing the bidding of her spouse, caring for her babe did she quietly repair to cupboard to stroke this cloak, crying out to her father?

Then, there she could save the lives of others, now could not save herself, from raging fevers, not even with the magic of her father’s cloak.

Swiftly, too swiftly she descended into the ground at Gravesend! We have her father’s cloak but Pocahantas took its power with her.

Joan Leotta has been playing with words since childhood. She has four novels, a collection of short stories and a picture book in print with three different publishers, available on Amazon. She has won awards in the US and abroad for her writing and performing. Her poetry and essays are in Gnarled Oak, Red Wolf,A Quiet Courage, Eastern Iowa Review, Hobart Literary Review, Silver Birch, Postcard Poems and Prose and others. Her second picture book, Summer in a Bowl, comes out in September 2016. Joan also performs folklore and one-woman shows on historic figures. She lives in Calabash, NC where she walks the beach with husband Joe. Find her on her blog or onFacebook.